Corn-harvester.



PATENTED 0OT. 16, 1906.

J. M. WILLIAMS.

COR-N HARVESTER.

APPLICATION TILED APE.3.1906.

' 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

fnzzerzior; J/Mii" a No. 838,190. PATENTED OUT. 16, 1906.

. J; M. WILLIAMS.

CORN HARVESTER.

APPLICATION PILED'APR.3,1906.

. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 a5 aa' v A 25 z 7 2a 2a- 27 A? 4 a UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

"JAMES M WIL IAMS, OF WILMORE, KANSAS. QORN-HAYRVESTER.

Specification of: Letters Patent.

PatentedOct. 1906.

Application m Ilpril3, 19 06. Serial No. 309.590.

and my object is to produce a machine-ofthis character cutting an tion of the eck of the platform. Other objects of the mventionwill herein, after appear, and in order that-it may be'fu'lly understood reference is to be had; to the ac: companying drawings,in which 4 9;. F1gurey1 1s a top plan view of' a corn-harvesteij embodying, my invention, the top ortion or. deck of the platform bein bro e'n a'wayto'expose a portion of one of t e chains thereunder. Fig. 2 is a section on the line H IIof Fig. 1, the machine being part1 broken away to expose mechanism whiic would otherwise be hidden. 3 is a front view of the machine. Fig. 4 'is anenlar ed'section taken 'on the line IV IV of Fig. 1, t e drivingrovided with means for reliably chains being-omitted'from saidfigure. Fig.

"5 is'an inverted plan viewpfa portion of the platform with t-he'stationa'ry knives detachably secured theretoa Fig.'6 is a detail sectional view taken'on the dotted line YI'of Fig. 3'.

Inthe said drawin s, 1 indicates a platformhaving a longitudimfi slot2, provided with a flared mouth 3-in order that corn. leaning to the right or left shall be gathered and straightened up so as to enter slot 2as the machine is drawn across, the field, the-front. end of said platform bein mounted upon double caster wheels 4' or ot er suitable sup' ports.

5 indicates a deck abovesaid platform aid" separated therefrom "by spacingbarsfi or at e'rwise, so as to provide achamber 7 be-' tween the platform and the deck.-.- The deck preferably extends forward to the point where ;he slot Zbegins to flare andis provided-with 1, slot '8, corresponding to and vertically above slot 2. l

- 9. indicates a transverse axle extending leck by U-bolts .10 ,or by other means. Y The tXlG is provided with upwardly-projecting.

:ran'ks 11 at its ends, and to accommodate :aid cranks I preferably slot the outer edges f the deck-5, as at 12, and =j'o'urnaledupon iling the corn upon the rear por-. 1

and 28 through the medium the cornd The ranged at. asuitable height 'to accommodate the ends of said axle are drive and carrying wheels 13, rovided at the inner ends of their hubs with bevel-gears 14, meshing with hori-. 'zontal gears 15, ournaIed on stub-shafts" 16 on brackets17, secured to and depending from the platform 1 Rigid with bevelegears are gearwheels 18, meshing with gears 19, rigidly secured on short shafts 20,- journaled in the platform and. deck in any suitable mannerv and equipped with sprocket-wheels 21, disposed betweentheplatform and deck "and connected by chains 22 with sprocketwheels 23, ri idly secured to the lower ends of the vertica shafts 24, j ournaled inthe platform and deck at opposite sides .of the rear, end of slots, 2 8, the upper ends of said shafts being journaled in longitudinal frames 25 and 26, respectively, said rames'b'eing secured at .their rear ends to the deck and at their front- 'ends to the platform. They are also braced from lateral r'novernentdoy braces 27.

28 represents slmllar shafts journaled at their upper ends infframes 25 and 26-fand at their lowerends in brackets 29, secured the'front end of the deck,

longitudinal alinement, by. preference, with shafts 261 at the corresponding side of slots 2 8, and motion is-transmitted om shafts 24 of the sprocketwheels 30 and 31, connected by chains 32, provided with outwardly-projecting fin ers shafts 28 being in' 33 the fingers bein of such length-that w en they project inwardly theyproject-across the slots 2 8, saidfingers being staggered with relation to each'=-;oth er, .so asv to avoid conflict and also to more efie'ctively engage and carry fingered chains 32; are arthe work in hand, the sprockets 30 and 31 being slid u ward or downward'on. the shaft and then 0 ampedat the desired point by set-- screws 34.

To cooperate with the chains inmaintain ingthe corn in an upright position during the completely severed, so that it shall fall flatly and longitudinally upon the rear portion of ;hroughcharnber 7 and secured rigidly to that of slot 2 thereof,- theknives provided with'a re'el' 35, the rear reels being .reels tends to cause it to incline rearwardly,

cient corn has accumulated upon the deck,

being preferably so arranged that their inner or cuttingedges shall converge rearwardly They are provided, by preference, with angleslots 37, through which extend bolts 38, carried. by the platform, nuts 39 engaging the ends of the bolts to clamp the knives rigidly in position. Tocooperate with the stationary cutting-knives 36, I provide shafts 24 with a pair of rotary knives ,40, having their cutting edges lapping and intersecting the vertical plane of the passage between the stationary knives. The',rotary knives are shown just above the platform 1, but obviously may be below the same, if desired.

vln practical operation the machine is drawn across the field by the draft-animals, (not shown,) with the slot in line with the row of corn to be cut, any corn leaning to the right or left being straightened up by one side or the other of the flaring mouth 3. In the progress of the machine the front reels and fingered chains engage the corn just before it comes into engagement with the stationary cutting-knives, and the speed of movement of. the reels and chains is so proportioned to that of the machine that the corn is maintained in an upright position as it is cut from either side by the stationary cutting-knives and eventually completely severed by the rotary knives, if such severance does not occur through the action of the stationary knives alone. An instant before said stalk is completely severed the rearward pressure against its upper end applied by the so that when completely severed it will fall and assume a longitudinal position upon the rear portion of the deck. Whenever suffithe driver will stop the draft-animals and discharge said corn, preferably by erecting a shock, though what dispositionhe makes of it is immaterial in this connection. The movement is imparted through the drivewheels 13, the several movable parts traveling in the directions indicated by the contig uous arrows.

. From the above description it will be apparent that I have produced a corn-harvester possessing the features of advantage enumerated as desirable, and I wish it to be understood that I do not desire to be limited to the exact construction shown and described, as various modifications in the form, proportion, detail construction, and arrangement of the parts will obviously suggest themselves to one skilled in the art.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A corn-harvester, compiising'a wheeled platform having a slot extending longitudinally and having its front end flared ,and opening through the corresponding end of the platform, stationary knives projecting inwardly of the opposite sides of said slot, a pair of vertical shafts at each side of said slot, reels mounted on the upper ends of said shafts, sprocket wheels on said shafts, chains connecting the sprocket-wheels at the same side of the slot and provided with fingers which'bridge said slot when projecting inwardly, a pair of rotary knives at opposlte sides of andintersecting the rear end of said slot, and means for transmitting motion from certain of the wheels supporting the platform to said shafts and rotary knives.

2. A corn-harvester, comprising a wheeled platform having a slot extending longitudinally and having its front end flared and opening through the corresponding end of the platform, stationary knives projecting inwardly of the opposite sides of said slot, a

pair of vertical shafts at each side of said slot, reels mounted on the upper ends of said shafts, sprocketwheels on said shafts, chains connecting the sprocket-wheels at the same.

side of the slot and provided with fingers which bridge said slot when projecting inwardly, a pair of rotary knives at opposite sides of and intersecting the rear end of said slot, sprocket-wheels on the vertical shafts at the rear end of the slot, a pair of sprocketwheels rearward and outward thereof, sprocket-chains connecting each rear s rocket with one of the sprockets 011 said sha 'ts, and a train of gearing between certain of the wheels supporting the platform and said rear sprocket-wheels.

3. A corn-harvester, comprising a Wheeled platform having a slot extending longitudinally and having its front end flared and opening through the corresponding end of the platform, stationary knives projecting inwardly of the opposite sides of said slot, a pair of vertical shafts at each side of said slot, reels mounted on the upper ends of said shafts, sprocket-wheels on said shafts, chains connecting thesprocket-wheels at the same side of the slot and provided with fingers which bridge said slot when projecting inwardly, a pair of rotary knives at opposite sides of and intersecting the rear end of said slot, sprocket-wheels on the vertical shafts at the rear end of the slot, a pair of sprocketwheels rearward and outward thereof, sprocket-chains connecting each rear sprocket with one of the sprockets on said shafts, a. 1

trainof gearing between certainof the wheels supporting the platform and said rear sprocket-wheels, and a deck supported above the. platform and above said. last-named sprocket wheels and chains,

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

' JAMES M. WILLIAMS.

Witnesses: I

D. H. GovE, J. S. HALLIDAY\.. 

